


The Change I See in You

by dreamerinfic



Series: Old Friends, New Places [1]
Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Domestic Quentin/Eliot, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Marina's mind wipe wore off, Old Friends, Other, Quentin & Eliot are too sweet for words, Reunions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:49:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23883298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamerinfic/pseuds/dreamerinfic
Summary: "Quentin was standing in the farmer’s market waiting for Eliot to finish shopping. He shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot and pulled his jacket tighter around him. His hair fell into his eyes and he reached up to push it behind his ear, a move he had perfected over many years. A message dinged on his phone and he pulled it out of his pocket. He looked down to see a message from Julia flash on the screen, a baby picture from the mommy and me class she was at with Hope. As he smiled and started to type his response he heard his name in the distance."Quentin and Julia are reunited with their old friend James and get a chance for closure and maybe a new beginning. Accompanied by Queliot domestic fluff.
Relationships: Quentin Coldwater/Eliot Waugh, mention of Kady/Alice, mention of Penny/Julia, past James/Julia Wicker
Series: Old Friends, New Places [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1975384
Comments: 11
Kudos: 85





	The Change I See in You

Quentin was standing in the farmer’s market waiting for Eliot to finish shopping. He shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot and pulled his jacket tighter around him. His hair fell into his eyes and he reached up to push it behind his ear, a move he had perfected over many years. A message dinged on his phone and he pulled it out of his pocket. He looked down to see a message from Julia flash on the screen, a baby picture from the mommy and me class she was at with Hope. As he smiled and started to type his response he heard his name in the distance. 

Quentin turned around, searching the faces around him. 

“Quentin! It is you.”

“James?”

James appeared out of the crowd and wrapped him in a hug. “Oh my god, Quentin. It’s been years. I can’t believe just seeing you in the market like this. How are you?”

“Good…I’m good…Um…you…you remember me, James?”

James looked hurt, “What? Of course I remember you. I mean, you and Julia were my best friends for so long.”

“Um…Julia said that you...um…”

“I know…I forgot her, I did. But I remembered. My parents and family, they knew her and couldn’t figure out why I didn’t remember. The spell…that’s what it was, right? The spell kind of wore off, or broke after a while. It took about three months for everything to come back but.. I remembered. But by that time you had both disappeared. I poked around a bit, tried to get to her, but the hedges were afraid to say too much.”

“Spell…Hedges…James, do you know about magic?” Quentin asked. 

James met Quentin’s eyes and nodded, “Yeah…I may have found out a few things. I mean Julia was in so deep and a lot of people knew about her and Marina.”

Quentin nodded and narrowed his eyes, “Oh…ok…so you know about Julia and Marina and hedge witches.”

“And Brakebills…Have you graduated yet, Quentin?”

Quentin’s eyes went wide and he shook his head to clear it…then he laughed, “Um…well, that got kind of complicated. I mean I never technically graduated. But…um…I’m actually a professor now.”

“A professor of magic?”

Quentin nodded, “Repair of small objects…minor mending…to be exact.”

“Wow, Quentin. That’s amazing,” James marveled.

Quentin smiled sheepishly, “Thanks.”

“Jesus, I know I have to watch out for guys hitting on my boyfriend at gay bars, but I thought I could leave you alone for five minutes at a farmer’s market,” Eliot said teasingly as he approached them and threw his arm around Quentin’s shoulders. 

“No, El…this is James,” Quentin explained gesturing in his direction.

“James?” Eliot drawled the name out like it was one of the few foreign languages he didn’t speak.

“Julia’s ex…my friend from home.” Quentin said with a shake of his head as he turned to look at Eliot. 

“Ohhhhh…Julia’s James,” Eliot said, like that explained everything. 

Quentin rolled his eyes. “Remember, you met him once at that birthday party for Julia my first year.”

“Q baby, the only thing I remember clearly from that year is how cute I thought you were,” Eliot said flippantly. 

Quentin looked up at him, “That is not true.”

“That I thought you were cute, definitely true.” Eliot transferred his basket of vegetables to his other hand and reached to shake James’ hand. “Eliot Waugh…boyfriend extraordinaire.”

Quentin smiled and tilted his head up for a kiss. Eliot complied. 

“Baby, you don’t have class tonight, right? They’ve got some really great looking tomatoes. I was thinking maybe some bruschetta & tortellini.”

“Sounds good, El. I have a class at the school at 3 pm but after that, I’m all yours.”

“Hmm,” Eliot pursed his lips and thought for a moment, “I better go get more supplies. I’ll be right back…I promise.”

“Sure you will,” Quentin called after him as he plunged back into the rows of vegetables. 

Quentin turned back to James with a smirk, “I’ll be standing here another half hour at least.”

James laughed with him and shook his head. “You’re different…I mean not just this,” he gestured the direction Eliot had departed. “You look happy, Quentin. It’s so good to see you like this.”

Quentin grinned, “Yeah, I am happy. I mean it’s been hell and hard and depressing and painful…but yeah…I’m really happy.”

James shot him a speculative look, “So…Eliot…Boyfriend, huh? That’s new. I mean…you never…I didn’t think you were…Well, you weren’t out when I knew you.”

Quentin drew in a breath, “Uh…I mean…I’ve always kind of known I wasn’t entirely straight. But then there was Eliot, and he’s…he…well, he’s him…So, um…I’m bisexual, and in a committed relationship with my best friend. So…yeah…Eliot, boyfriend.”

James nodded and smiled again, “You know, the Quentin that I knew back in the day never would’ve been able to say all that out loud in a crowd with so much confidence.”

Quentin ran a hand through his long hair, “A lot’s happened…so much…and I’m definitely not the same guy as I was back then.”

“Me neither, Q. I get it,” James agreed. He cocked his head and gave Quentin a searching look, “You said he was your best friend…Is Julia still…Is she in your life?”

“Oh yeah, of course. She’s great, she’s fine. She’s in a relationship. She actually has a kid now.”

James’ eyes widened, “Wow…I’m, I’m so glad. I’d love to see her again.”

Quentin got a worried look in his eyes and James held out his hands in front of him, “Not like that. Just to apologize. Close the chapter, I guess.”

Quentin let out a breath of relief and pressed his lips together thoughtfully. 

“Hey, I’m back again. I’ve got all kinds of fruits and vegetables to torture you with. You’ll love it.” Eliot swept into their space and bent his head in James direction, “James…so nice to see you again. I believe we’ve met once before. It’s lovely to make your acquaintance again.”

Quentin snorted, “You’re hopeless, El.”

“I know,” he replied readily. “Ready to go, Q. Or are you still catching up.”

“Uh…,” Quentin got a mischievous glint in his eye. “Eliot…James…uh…knows about,” Quentin rolled his fingers in a subtle tut and a gust of wind blew up around them. 

Eliot grinned and studied James, “Well, well…that is interesting.”

“Yeah,” Q agreed, “And he wants to catch up with Julia so...,” Quentin shot Eliot a sidelong glance. 

“And you don’t think Julia will blow a gasket?” Eliot asked Quentin. “And Penny will kick your ass. I love you baby, but I’m not throwing down battle magic with the baby daddy for you.”

“Liar,” Quentin accused, “You totally would. But Penny won’t be there. There’s a welters match this weekend and he’s having late practices with all the disciplines this week. He’ll be gone until late tonight. And my ex-girlfriend comes over for dinner all the time and you don’t try to blast her or anything.”

Eliot gave him a long suffering look and laid a hand on his shoulder, “That doesn’t mean I don’t want to sometimes. Trust me, it’s been a process. Besides, she can be a raging bitch. But now she’s dating Kady she’s so much easier to put up with…When she can turn off the righteous disdain.”

Quentin rubbed a hand over his face, “God. Ok…well, I was thinking of inviting you for dinner,” he said to James. “What do you think? Can you put up with a bunch of magicians over a dinner table for one evening?”

“And see Julia again? She’d be there?” James asked skeptically. 

“She lives with us. We all sort of…share…a magical penthouse,” Quentin said haltingly. 

“Our family life is very complicated,” Eliot added. 

Quentin nodded seriously. 

James laughed nervously. “Ah…I really didn’t expect this when I got up this morning. I’d like to come though. What time? Where is this magical penthouse?”

“How about 6 tonight?” El suggested as Quentin executed another small tut and produced a business card with the address of the penthouse printed across it. 

James nodded and looked at the card. “Quentin, I just can’t believe I ran into you. After searching for you and Julia after I remembered…I’d given up. Thank you for the invitation.”

Quentin opened his arms for a quick hug, “We’ll see you tonight, ok?”

“Ok,” James responded. “Thanks again guys.”

They both waived goodbye to him as he walked away and then turned to finish their shopping. Eliot wanted to stop at a bakery up the street before heading back home. 

Julia wasn’t home yet when they returned to the penthouse. Eliot began putting the vegetables and other supplies away in the kitchen as Quentin sat at the counter watching him. His dark curls fell into his eyes as he bent to put onions into a basket. Quentin was momentarily struck by El’s natural beauty and grace. He bit his lip and thought about how this was his life, how much had changed since James had known him. The Quentin Coldwater that had pined after Julia and stole secret glances at James never would’ve believed that he could deserve this man. Eliot caught him staring and preened, “What are you looking at, Coldwater?”

Quentin smiled up at him, “Just admiring the view, Waugh.”

Eliot blew him an air kiss and started slicing bread. “So…James was cute. I seem to remember you telling me that when he was with Julia you had a little crush on him.”

Quentin nodded, ”Uh…yeah. That was…yeah.”

Eliot chuckled at Quentin’s unease. He pursed his lips as he thought a moment, “So…no lingering feelings there when you saw him again?”

Quentin scoffed, “What? No, Eliot…Why would you think that.”

Eliot shrugged one elegant shoulder, “Just checking. I mean…it’d be alright if there were.”

“Hey,” Quentin waited until Eliot’s eyes met his, “There were no lingering feelings other than friendship. He’s straight. And even if he wasn’t, I have the most beautiful man in the world in my bed every night. I don’t have any need to look at anyone else.”

Eliot let a small grin curl his lips and heat crept into his eyes as he held Quentin’s gaze. 

“Hi boys, I’m back from class,” Julia announced as she banged through the door. She simultaneously pushed a stroller and carried a book bag, diaper bag, and purse. 

Eliot gave him a wink and turned back to his work in the kitchen. “Hey Jules, I need to talk to you.” Quentin called to her.

“Give me a minute, Q. I’ve got to put Hope down for her nap. I’ll be back in a bit, ok.” She’d parked the stroller in the middle of the floor and dropped all of her bags next to it. Q watched her lift the fussy baby onto her hip and make her way to the bedroom they’d turned into the nursery. 

“This is going to be a fun conversation,” he said to himself and he heard Eliot snort in agreement behind him. 

Eliot and Quentin were leaning against each other on the couch when Julia reappeared. Quentin was reading a textbook and trying to prepare for his 3 pm class and Eliot was checking his email. Julia sighed and sat down across from them. “So what’s up boys?”

Quentin looked up at Julia and took a deep breath. “Um…Yeah…Just…,” he stuttered and then looked back at Eliot. Eliot held up his hands, “This is all you, honey bun.”

Quentin snorted, “Right…Ok…So I ran into someone at the farmer’s market this morning waiting on Eliot to finish shopping. Someone we both know.”

“Who, Q? Why are you being weird?”

“Jules…it was James.”

She blanched, “Oh shit…James. But did he…did he know you?” 

“Yeah, he recognized me first. He asked about you, Julia. The spell wore off. He remembers. And he poked around afterwards…He knows,” Quentin said gently. 

“What? What do you mean he knows?”

“Magic. He knows about magic. He found the hedges you were hanging around at the time. They talked to him, told him about you and Marina. He even knew about me and Brakebills,” Quentin explained as he sat up and leaned forward. 

Eliot ran a hand over his back, “Q, don’t forget to tell Julia about dinner.”

Julia shot her eyes towards Eliot, “Dinner?” Her gaze swung back to Quentin, “Did you invite him to dinner, Quentin?”

“Yeah,” he breathed out in a small voice. 

“What the fuck, Quentin Coldwater? What the actual fuck?”

Eliot held out a hand in a conciliatory gesture to Julia while his other kept soothing down Quentin’s back. “In our boy’s defense your ex did seem like a nice guy just trying to get some closure. I think it’ll be fine.”

“Shut up, Eliot.”

“Hey!” Quentin protested. “Don’t talk to El like that. It was my idea to invite him. Julia, he just wants to say hi and catch up.” Julia gave him a skeptical look. Quentin rolled his eyes, “Look, I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. But try to remember…he was our friend. For years. And he remembers us and he knows about us. Wouldn’t it be nice to see him again, talk and explain things? Make a new start?”

Julia just sat there looking at him. Her face was blank and her narrow gaze revealed nothing of what she was thinking. Quentin thought she might have been trying to remember life before magic when James was important to her. So much had happened since and life had changed so much. How could they go back and try to reclaim any of that innocence?

But then she nodded, slowly, thoughtfully. “Ok…Ok fine, Q. I’ll be there. I’ll play nice. I’ll try to explain things as much as possible and make things right between us. But I’m with Penny now, and I have Hope…there’s no going back to James, nothing like that is remotely possible.”

Quentin shook his head, “No, no, no. I get it. I completely understand. I promise Jules, I already made that clear to him.”

She nodded again and stood up, “I need a nap.” As she left them alone Quentin let out a breath he’d been holding. His whole body seemed to deflate. Eliot leaned in to kiss him on the temple, “That was good, baby. I thought she took it really well.”

Quentin let out a laugh, “Yeah…really well. At least she’ll be there, that’s all I can ask I guess.”

After Quentin left for Brakebills Eliot set about tidying the apartment and making it look welcoming for their guest. He fluffed the throw pillows, dusted, picked up baby paraphernalia, and made sure the floor was spotless. When Julia got up with the baby he watched Hope while she showered and then helped her pick out a suitable outfit for the evening. By the time Quentin got home he was pulling out ingredients for dinner.

Eliot greeted him with a tender kiss and then followed him upstairs to their room. Quentin pulled him close as the door shut behind them, “It looks amazing downstairs. You didn’t have to do all that, you know. We’re not trying to impress anyone.”

Eliot pecked him on the lips, “How do you know I did it? Maybe Julia did.”

Quentin narrowed his eyes and gave him a lopsided smirk, “Right…Julia, who’s reaction to tonight was ‘what the fuck?’ is going to spend all day cleaning the penthouse.”

Eliot shrugged his shoulders, “Yeah, well…I didn’t have any work to do, so I figured I’d make myself useful. I mean we don’t want him to think Julia’s turned into a complete slob.”

Quentin snorted and pulled him into a proper kiss. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?” he said as he pulled away. 

Eliot grinned down at him, “Hmmm…that may have come up. But you know I never get tired of hearing it.” He pressed his lips against Quentin’s again and kissed him deeply, their lips sliding together and tongues tangling. When Quentin pulled away his was breathless and clutching at Eliot’s vest. 

“How long do we have?” he asked hungrily, hoping they had time for more than just kisses. But Eliot shook his head, “You need to shower and change. I laid out clothes on the bed for you.”

Quentin whined, “Why can’t I just wear these clothes? They were fine for work.”

“Because I laid out clothes for you. Come on, Q. It’s a dinner party. You know I love to throw a good party. Play along please and put on the clothes and I promise I’ll make it up to you later.” Quentin reluctantly nodded and pulled out of Eliot’s arms to sulk in the shower.

By the time Quentin descended the stairs in the button down and slacks that Eliot had laid out Eliot was busy cooking. He’d somehow found time to dress and ready himself for dinner and was resplendent in blue pants and suitcoat, a floral patterned button down, dark gray waistcoat, and a matching tie. His long dark curls were tied back from his face to show off his beautiful eyes that he’d used his trademark eyeliner on. He wore an apron that Julia had bought him for his birthday that had Michelangelo’s David printed on it. He felt a smile spread across his face as he took in the sight. His mouth watered and he was certain it wasn’t from the food that was being prepared so skillfully. 

When the doorbell rang Julia shot him a look that held just a touch of trepidation. Sympathetic and a little nervous himself he took a deep breath and gave her one last, encouraging hug before he hurried off to answer the door. 

“Hey Q,” James greeted with a nervous smile. 

“Hey, come on in.”

James offered the bottle of red wine he’d brought and Quentin took it, ushering him into the penthouse. He looked around and let out an astounded chuckle. “Amazing…wow…I half expected this morning to have been a dream. I thought I’d get here and there’d be nothing. This is beyond…,” he stopped and stared as Julia walked forward and stood a few feet away. 

She shifted nervously and licked her lips. She seemed uncharacteristically tentative and unsure. She raised a hand in a small wave and curled her lips into a grin. 

“Oh my god…Julia…it’s…it’s really you.”

She nodded, “Yep, it’s me.”

He started to hug her, but then pulled back and ended up lamely extending his hand for a handshake. She took it and smiled. “It’s good to see you again, James.” Quentin let out the breath he’d been holding and smiled back at them both. “Anyone want wine?” he asked holding up the bottle. They both nodded. 

Eliot stopped his dinner preparations to greet James with a warm handshake, “Welcome to our magical penthouse. Glad you found it ok, sometimes the wards make it tricky for muggles to get to.” James’ eyes widened. “Oh…well, it seemed easy enough.”

“Ah…I adjusted the wards this afternoon,” Julia mumbled as she sat down on the couch. Eliot giggled. “What the fuck, Quentin Coldwater? What the actual fuck?” Quentin mimicked mockingly. 

She swatted at him as he set a wine glass down in front of her. “Hey, I warmed to the idea, ok?” Quentin smirked at her.

“So that was your reaction, huh?” She nodded ruefully. “Hey, I don’t blame you. Things were left pretty shitty between us even without the memory wipe Marina did. I’m really sorry I couldn’t be there for you when you were struggling and help you through it like I should have. I just didn’t know what I was dealing with.”

She waved away his words, “It’s ok. Hey, I was into some pretty heavy shit and things went really wrong for a while. In all honesty, if you’d been there you’d probably be dead right now…and it would’ve been my fault. So at least you were spared that fate.”

The baby fussed and Julia reached down to lift her into her arms. She soothed and cooed to her quietly and kissed her forehead as James watched in awe. When she turned back to him with the baby in her arms he was blinking back tears. “This is Hope. HQ for short,” she introduced softly.

James stared at her for a moment and then shook his head, “Wow…Julia, she’s beautiful. You’re a mother…”

She grinned and nodded happily. Laughter came from the kitchen and she looked to see Quentin standing at the counter plucking cheese from a tray with Eliot’s arms wrapped around him from behind. James followed her gaze as Eliot shooed Quentin’s hands away from the platter and Quentin leaned back and tipped his head up for a kiss. Julia smiled at them as James watched thoughtfully, “The last time I saw Quentin he was bordering on suicidal. In and out of hospitals all the time…” Eliot playfully pushed Quentin away and scolded lightly, “You’re going to make me burn my sauce, Coldwater.” James turned back to Julia, “The change in him is like a miracle. I never thought Quentin could ever be like that.”

Julia shot the pair in the kitchen another look and said thoughtfully, “It hasn’t been easy for either of them. They’re both fucked up in their own ways. They’ve been through so much. But they’ve loved each other for what seems like forever. They just finally got out of their own way and did something about it. They’re finally in a good place and have their shit together. It’s so sweet sometimes I feel like I’m going into sugar shock. I’m just trying to sleep through the night and not kill my partner. They’re over there talking picket fences and planning a lifetime together.”

James shook his head with amusement, “I guess if anybody deserves happiness like that it’s Quentin.”

“Have you found anybody yet?” Julia asked carefully. 

“No,” he huffed out. “I’ve not met anyone I felt that close to in a while.”

Julia leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, “Sometimes it happens when you least expect it.”

“Dinner’s served,” Eliot called from the dining table. They all sat at the impeccably laid table and Eliot served them a meal that was worthy of any Italian restaurant in the city. They all chatted and laughed easily like old friends should. Quentin blushed and grew embarrassed as stories were shared about him as a moody teenager. Julia threatened bodily harm as Quentin told a story about her sneaking out when she was 15 to meet James at a library after hours. 

“Kind of ironic with how much the library was up our asses a while back, and how much work we do now trying to rebuild the damn thing,” Julia observed. 

Eliot sighed dramatically, “In my experience libraries are seldom worth the trouble and will always come back to haunt you…especially the Library of the Neitherlands.”

“Says the man who got banned for book burning in his first five minutes,” Quentin observed. 

“Hey, I was under a lot of emotional stress at the time,” Eliot pouted. “But it’s ok Julia…While I don’t understand your library obsession, I have a deep appreciation for book nerds, so…you know, you do you or whatever.” 

“Hey, speaking of your appreciation for book nerds,” she began while giving Eliot a critical eye. “You need to re-do your sound dampening wards. You guys woke up the baby last night and that’s a big no.”

Eliot looked affronted and Quentin covered his face with his hands, “My wards are airtight. How do you know HQ wasn’t picking us up on her psychic wavelength?” Quentin looked horrified by this suggestion. 

“Because I heard you! Swear to god, I’ve never heard so much god damn moaning. Re-do your wards, El.”

Quentin looked like he was going to sink into the floor. Before Eliot could produce another argument Quentin put his hands out in a weak flailing motion, “Ok, ok. We’ll work on them tonight. I promise. God…can we please stop discussing my sex life?”

James was laughing at them now, observing the interplay between his old friends was filling a place in his heart that had been torn apart when Marina had taken his memories and they’d disappeared into their magical world. Perhaps there was a chance now to get some of this camaraderie he’d missed back in his life. There’d never been any friends in his life as close to him as these two had been. 

Julia was plunging headlong into a teasing diatribe, “Have you seen who you’re with? Didn’t you sign some kind of agreement when you decided to fuck Eliot Waugh that your sex life is no longer private? I mean doesn’t everyone know about your first time together?”

Quentin groaned and threw up his hands, “I was drunk! We were all drunk! And shitfaced from battle magic and emotion bottles. I don’t even remember it!”

Eliot rolled his eyes and scoffed, “Yes you do.”

Quentin turned a deeper shade of red, “Ok…yes I do. But no, I signed no such agreement.”

“I don’t think Margo remembers it, but really, she tapped out so early was she really even there? She missed all the good parts anyway. I mean threesomes are so blasé,” Eliot teased as he turned a wickedly lascivious eye towards him. 

“Shut up, Eliot.” 

Laughter rang around the table as Eliot pulled Quentin into his arms and kissed his forehead. 

They moved over to the living room for cocktails and Julia excused herself briefly as she went to put Hope to bed. Quentin began to fill James in on his years at Brakebills and how he and Eliot had met. The description of the Physical Kid’s parties particularly interested James as he thought back on all those years that Quentin avoided any social gathering where more than Julia and James were present. Years spent trying to make sure Quentin wasn’t a wallflower had him marveling at how he had even made friends with this man he was so clearly head over heels for, much less fallen into a threesome with him. Maybe that meeting in itself had held some kind of magic for Quentin. 

Eliot was showing off his skills with eccentric flare as he served James a beautiful sea blue cocktail creation. Quentin received one that was a deep burgundy color and tasted of berries. He could feel the faint hint of magic on his tongue as he sipped. His eyes slid to Eliot as he settled beside him with his own mint green concoction. “Hey,” he said softly as Eliot laid a large hand on his thigh. “Hey,” Eliot answered back in a voice breathy and full of longing.

“I’d say get a room, but…you know…you live here,” Julia quipped as she came back and joined them. James cocked his head in the direction of the two men who were still absorbed in each other. “Are they always like this?” he asked with a chuckle. 

Julie gave him a long suffering look and nodded. “Hey, while they’re preoccupied though…I want to just apologize. For letting magic come between us. I was so messed up back then. I lost so much, I almost didn’t come through the other side. But now that I look back and I see what I did to you…to us…I just want to say how sorry I am. I hope you can forgive me.” She looked him in the eyes and the deep earnestness and hard won wisdom was evident. She was perhaps more changed then he had at first realized. There was more maturity, depth…more understanding, in her gaze than he’d ever seen in another human being. It was a bit unnerving. 

He swallowed nervously and broke eye contact with her. “Julia…I don’t pretend to know what you went through, or understand the world that you and Q live in now. So much has changed. You have a boyfriend…a baby…and are building a family. Quentin,” James risked a glance in his direction and saw that he and Eliot were curled around each other on the couch sharing tender caresses, “he’s living the dream with the love of his life, more self-confident and happy than I thought possible in the old days.” He shook his head and sipped his cocktail, measuring his words, “Whatever happened to the two of you while we were apart you managed to come out better. And I’m so happy for you both.” 

Julia sighed and took one of his hands in hers, “Forgiven then?” she asked tentatively. 

James huffed a laugh and fixed her with a sincere look, “Forgiven. I forgave you a long time ago actually; I just needed to tell you. But…” he paused, looking between Quentin and Julia, searching their faces, “I would love to be a part of your lives again...If you can find a place for a muggle friend?” 

“Yeah,” Quentin said immediately, not waiting for Julia to reply. “Of course. Right Julia?” 

Julia pretended to think it over with a grave expression on her face, then broke into a wide smile, “I’d like that. I think that sounds like something we can do. In fact,” she said giving him a conspiratorial wink, “I may even know someone I’d like to introduce you to…you know, see if any romantic feelings develop.”

“Jesus Julia, please tell me it’s not Kady,” Eliot moaned. “She’d eat him alive.”

Julia shot him a look, “Kady’s dating Alice remember…But shut up…you’ll scare him off. Go back to feeling up your boyfriend.” 

Eliot shrugged, “Ok,” and tangled his fingers in Quentin’s hair. Quentin’s laughter rang out and they all joined in. 

As Eliot worked on the sound dampening wards later that night in their room Quentin laid in bed staring up at the ceiling. “Isn’t it amazing, El…that something that I thought was lost so long ago can be found by a chance meeting? And all because you wanted to look at vegetables.”

Eliot hummed his response as he worked through the tuts. With a last flare of his fingers the magic pooled into the wards and he felt the room shiver with the magic he’d encased it in. He let his lips curl in a satisfied grin and turned to find Quentin staring at him, ever fascinated with magic even after years of being a practiced magician. 

Eliot began to undress as he mulled over the day’s events and thought about James, Julia and Quentin. “I think it was quite a success. I’m glad you invited him over.”

“Yeah, it all worked out…Julia didn’t kill me, so…Success,” Quentin answered as he leaned up to kiss Eliot as he climbed into bed. Once he was settled under the covers he reached to pull Quentin close, “I can’t wait to see who Julia has in mind for him…that should be interesting. God, what if it’s Margo?” Quentin answered with an ungraceful snort and they both dissolved into fits of laughter as they turned off the light.


End file.
